COLLEGE BASKETBALL
UConn’s Walker ready to start NBA career
STORRS, CONN. | Connecticut All-American Kemba Walker announced Tuesday he will enter June’s NBA draft. The junior point guard said he has not hired an agent but has been talking to them.
The 6-foot-1 Walker led the Huskies to a 32-9 record, including an 11-0 postseason run that ended with a national championship. He is expected to be a first-round pick, and perhaps the second guard chosen behind Duke’s Kyrie Irving.
Walker averaged 23.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists during his junior season.
BASKETBALL
Knicks may be without Stoudemire until playoffs
GREENBURGH, N.Y. | New York Knicks star Amare Stoudemire sat out his third straight game with a sprained left ankle Tuesday night against Chicago and may not play again until the postseason.
Coach Mike D’Antoni said Stoudemire still is not 100 percent but wouldn’t rule him out for Wednesday’s regular-season finale at Boston. He said Stoudemire would be ready for the opener of the playoff series against the Celtics, which will be Saturday or Sunday.
Stoudemire (25.4 points per game) was hurt last Wednesday at Philadelphia when he stepped on Thaddeus Young’s foot trying to block a shot.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Butler’s Mack intends to declare for NBA draft
INDIANAPOLIS | Butler’s Shelvin Mack wants to find out where he stands in the NBA draft. If it doesn’t work out, hey, the 21-year-old junior can always return to the two-time national runner-ups.
On Tuesday, the 6-foot-3 shooting guard said he is declaring to enter the draft but has not hired an agent, making him eligible to return to school next season. Players must declare their intentions by April 24 and have until May 8 to withdraw if they do not hire an agent.
Mack finished as the Bulldogs’ No. 2 scorer last season at 16 points per game, led Butler in assists (3.4) and finished third in rebounds (4.5).
TENNIS
Serena Williams grabbed her racket and stepped on a tennis court Tuesday, which she said was her “first day back” after a series of health problems, including blood clots in her lung. The 13-time Grand Slam singles champion and former No. 1-ranked player has not played an official match since she won the title at Wimbledon in July.
Shortly after claiming her fourth singles championship at the All England Club last year, Williams, 29, cut her foot on glass at a restaurant, an injury that led to two operations. The second surgery was in October, and she said she spent 10 weeks in a cast and 10 weeks in a walking boot.
She was diagnosed in February with blood clots in her lung. After that, she said she needed treatment for a hematoma — a gathering of blood under the skin — on her stomach.
FOOTBALL
Ex-Giants star Taylor called low-risk sex offender
NEW CITY, N.Y. | Former pro football star Lawrence Taylor, who pleaded guilty in January to sexual misconduct and patronizing an underage prostitute, was declared a low-risk sex offender Tuesday.
Prosecutors argued for a Level 2 designation. Instead, the judge chose the lower Level 1, which means a photo of the former New York Giants linebacker will not be posted on the online sex-offender registry.
Rockland County Court Judge William Kelly said Taylor’s crime already was well-known.
From wire dispatches and staff reports
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